Turkey has completed equipping its first military base in Africa in Somalia, Mogadishu.
According to Istanbul based publication the Daily Sabah Newspaper the base will host Turkish military officers to train Somali soldiers and troops in their fight against the armed group Al-Shabaab.
The base that will be operational soon has been approved by the United Nations, is the Republic of Turkey second overseas military installation after first one in Qatar.
Around 200 Turkish military officers will be deployed to the base in Somalia in the first stage to train 10,500 Somalia soldiers.
Turkey is the closest ally of Somalia in its efforts to recover from to decades of civil war in the country.
Ankara has been providing military assistance to Somalia for over five years now, within the scope of military and financial cooperation deals between the two governments.
It has also provided the horn of African nation with over 400 million dollars in the biggest aid campaign for the country while it was struggling to fight starvation.
By Hassan Istiila
